2009 Tour of California - Stage 8 Hors Category Mount Palomar
The final act of the 2009 tour drama waits on the climb San Diego County's Mount Palomar on Sunday...

A big hill comes to the Tour of California
By John Summerson

There seems to be a bit of extra excitement as the cycling season cranks up this year. No doubt the return of the 7 time Tour de France winner, Lance Armstrong, among others, into a number of major stage races in 2009 plays a role.

What has me excited however is the route of the 2009 Tour of California, and specifically the inclusion in this year’s race, for the first time, of an hors, or beyond category climb, the most difficult hill climb classification. While several ascents in past editions were categorized as hors, they were in reality category 1 (the 2nd most difficult classification) hills, challenging certainly but with not quite the level of overall difficulty a true hors climb will bring to America’s premier stage race. Its placement in the final stage of the race should only add to the drama.

Click on graphic for a larger image(Pdf.)
Stage Map (Pdf.)

Palomar Mountain lies in the dry chaparral country of Southern California, southeast of the town of Temecula. Like many US climbs it is unknown to many except the locals. However this includes the returning Floyd Landis who, if his fitness level allows him to be in contention late in the race, may have an edge on the rest of the field here.

The climb starts out fairly tame but soon after the riders turn onto Route S6 which takes them to the top, things change dramatically. The crux stretch is an almost 5 mile long section through multiple, hairpin switchbacks. Averaging 7-9% and with limited site distance, the peloton will be stressed here and a rider or small group could get away.

Originally scheduled as a mountain top finish, Palomar is now placed about halfway through the stage so that, with a lot of riding left to do after its ascent, it may likely be difficult for a breakaway to stay away. Regardless, riders will have to keep this giant in mind over the first 7 stages and will need to perform well on Palomar’s slopes in stage 8 in order to place high in the overall classification. Even if it has no influence on the race itself it is an opportunity for some of the World’s best cyclists to sample one of the most difficult North American climbs.

Graphic © 2009 John Summerson

The use of Palomar Mountain within the Tour of California could be called a milestone of sorts for top level American stage racing. Very similar statistically to the standard route up the Galibier in France (after L’Alp d’Huez and Tourmalet perhaps the most influential TdF climb), Palomar is the most difficult climb ever used in the Tour of California.

Other European climbs with similar stats include France’s Croix de Fer and the east side of Agnel in Italy. Comparably difficult American climbs include the nearby Mt Baldy, Arizona’s massive Mt Graham, Nevada’s Route 156 and Owens Valley’s (CA) South Lake.

While not of Palomar’s stature, other challenging climbs will be ridden in this year’s race, including Tunitas Creek Road (stage 2), one of the most scenic climbs in the US and Bonny Dune (stage 2) and Sierra Road (stage 3), the latter becoming a staple in the Tour of CA. And while not using big climbs, the foothills of the western Sierras will be ridden for the first time during stage 4 which may hopefully provide opportunities for the use of even more great American climbs in future races.

Note:  The route the Tour of CA will use does not include the highest point or the maximum elevation of the climb up Palomar Mountain. The absolute top is a dead end road to a state park, which of course would not work for a tour unless the climb was a summit finish.

John Summerson is a cyclist who collects climbs the way a connoisseur might collect fine art; with one difference John finds the climbs, measures and rides them savoring the suffering and challenge of each and then writes about them.
John  is also the author of "The Complete Guide to Climbing (By Bike) "A guide to cycling, climbing and the most difficult hill climbs in the Unites States"  Read our review of the book here. For more information on the book go to the book website where there are more climb profiles and a link to purchase the book.

John Summerson Climbing Articles
95th Tour de France - The Major Mountains & Climbs 1
95th Tour de France - The Major Mountains & Climbs 2
91st Giro d'Italia - Giro Climbs & Comparable USA Climbs - 1
91st Giro d'Italia - Giro Climbs & Comparable USA Climbs - 2
Book Review - The Complete Guide to Climbing (By Bike)

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